Marketing, Strategy, and The Force by Joe Winn

Get a lower interest rate! How much lower? Nearly 3%!
OrRemember the milk, we’ll remember your rewards.Or evenBuy what you need. Support the causes you love most.

Let’s face it. People aren’t good at math. It’s an important challenge the credit union industry is tackling with financial literacy programs. Commendable. However, I would bet most people will still sign up for a credit card with a few percent higher interest rate if it means they can get back a few percent in rewards. “They’ll even out in the end, at worst,” may be a common thought.

And rewards are just the beginning.

You’re a credit union. Community engagement is part of your DNA. Show it!

Just take a look at our friends up north. I spoke with a representative from Vancity Credit Union in Vancouver about their credit card program. Why? Because it is different by a long shot.

Not only do their members receive rewards, depending on the level of card chosen, but the entire program is a staple of the community. But don’t take my word for it! Here’s how the spokesperson for the program described it to me (emphasis mine):

“What we do is take 5% of our profits on Visa card products and put it into the enviroFund Grant Program. Being a credit union, we donate all our profits back to our local communities through our grant programs and member rebates. This 5% is just part of what we do and is another way members can choose to support environmental issues through the credit card they use.

We use the funds to address local environmental issues in our communities. Right now we are in the middle of a 5 year campaign focusing on building a sustainable local food system. In the past (as the enviroFund has been going since 1991) we have addressed other issues such as air quality and transportation, toxics in our environment, water issues, green buildings, wildlife preservation and ecosystem restoration to name a few.”

It’s ok if you feel a bit overwhelmed. “But they’re a really big institution, Joe!” That’s fair, and I raised that point to them. They explained how it is related to a percentage of profits, not the total funds. Therefore, a small institution could run a program with smaller investments, but no less impressive impact.

Take, for example, Christian Community Credit Union. Their “Gives to Missions” cards support a variety of community efforts using a portion of profits from interchange fees. From disaster relief to college scholarships, their members have supported a to-date donation total of over $4 million! Oh, and cardholders receive rewards for every purchase, as well.

A recent blog on A Smarter Choice discussed the perks of using a credit union credit card. All of them revolved around the boring rates. It’s true, they are lower, yet wouldn’t it attract more attention if you spoke of building playgrounds in your city and returning rewards to your members?

If we talk about being a smarter choice, shouldn’t we be smarter about how we promote our own programs and services?